Dead in the Water (2002) User Reviews

Tension on the High Seas

[claudio_carvalho · 6/10 · 4 November 2007]

In Rio de Janeiro, Gloria (Dominique Swain) is an ambitious young woman, whose father (José WIlker) is bankrupted. When the son of his business partner, Marcos (Sebastian DeVicente), arrives in Rio, her father asks Gloria to have a trip with him in their boat Boa Vida. Gloria, her boyfriend Danny (Scott Bairstow) and their common friend Jeff (Henry Thomas) get Marcos in his hotel and they go to Angra dos Reis. While in the sea, they drink Caipirinha and beer, and Gloria flirts with the wealthy Marcos. The jealous Danny sees they kissing each other, throws Marcos in the water with a lifebuoy and drives the boat to a distant island to scare Marcos. However, they have a problem with the propellers and when they return to the spot, they do not find Marcos anymore. Afraid of the consequences of his possible drowning, they discuss alibis and how to resolve the situation, shattering their relationship in an environment of high-tension and selfishness.

"Dead in the Water" is an amoral tale of ambition, selfishness and greed based on three shallow characters: Gloria is an ambitious and amoral young woman, having the behavior of a slut and capable of teasing three young men looking for the best one to support her; Danny is a loser posing of executive but incapable of taking reasonable attitudes or decisions; and Jeff, who stays close to Gloria and Danny not for friendship or loyalty, but because he wants to stay with Gloria. The final twist is very ironical and suitable for this reasonable film. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Tensão em Alto-Mar" ("Tension on the High Seas")

Needs some work, but not too shabby

[trojanrabbit97 · 6/10 · 10 March 2004]

*** SPOILER WARNING -- READER BEWARE ***

I rather enjoyed this movie. I agree with those who've said that the first 30 minutes of the film are expendable. The real fun is in the last hour. Now I would have ended it differently myself, swapping the fates of Marcos and Gloria, with Marcos drowning for real and Gloria getting rescued. A little more Neil LaBute and a little less Rod Serling. I think it would have been interesting to look in Gloria's eyes as she climbed on the chopper and settled in. Would we have seen any remorse flit across her face as she realized that she's actually going to have to face society with these three lives on her mind?

There are ways to make a bad-guys-get-what's-coming-to-'em kind of film, but this one struck me as a little pedestrian. I found the acting convincing as the tension on the boat built up. Henry Thomas has managed to keep both his acting skills and his body in shape. Bairstow and Swain are still just shy of making it really big, and I think clips of this film will help them in the long run. Overall, I'm saying 6 outta 10.

stupid move with obvious ending.

[silentsebastian · 4/10 · 6 October 2005]

This movie has really intense parts that i have never seen before in a U.s flick and that's all good but then it becomes stupid like the ending...then it starts flopping.The dork wins at the end,whatever...i like when they become mad and they start doing serious things to each other...they should have think a lot better before acting...whatever,the movie is not that much a bad flick or a en excellent thing..if you don't have anything else to do...just watch it,as i did,maybe you'll enjoy that parts that i enjoyed...watching 3 desperate U.s kids going mad until they eliminate themselves,something that maybe is happening in real life,sad.

clever, thoughtful thriller

[allene · 20 November 2001]

Dead in the Water is a very auspicious debut by first time director/writer Gustavo Lipsztein, a Brazilian born film-maker with a Hollywood sensibility. While the film works well as a thoroughly entertaining thriller, it also plays as a morality tale. The three American protagonists ultimately care only about one thing -- themselves. When confronted with a situation for which they are not prepared, they come unglued because they have no value system to fall back on. They are eaten alive by their own narcissism. Well-paced, well-acted, beautifully shot, this is new movie you definitely want to see and new director you definitely want to take note of.

Shoot yourself before you see this movie

[Darkest_Rose · 1/10 · 13 November 2002]

This movie didn't look to bad on the cover so I decided to rent it. Oh my god, it's one of the dumbest movies ever made. What were the people thinking when they made this pile of crap? I kept hoping this movie would get better but it got worse by the minute. I was dissapointed with dominique swain. She's a good actress but this movie is her worst.The actors were so annoying, i would shoot them if I was on the boat with them. THat forgein mexican guy or whatever the hell he is, was so freaking ugly and annoying , i would have thrown him in the water myself and left him there, bad movie 0/10

Bad Entertainment

[Tony-93 · 3/10 · 7 October 2001]

I must confess that I was anxious to see this movie since I had read an article in a local paper while the movie was being shot. When I had the first chance to go to the movie premiere I take it. It was really disappointing. The plot is good but not the screenplay. In the beginning it has the audience laughing where it shouldn't. Gloria (Dominique Swain) is talking with her father (José Wilker) and while she is speaking in english, he is in portuguese. Ok I understand that both speaks portuguese and english but when her father starts speak english, she starts portuguese. It is hard not to laugh. At least, Dominique speaks portuguese really well for an american. The cinematography is good and deserve its credit. The first hour is is good, whith the tension growing and actor Sebastian being a revelation but when it is time to conclude, it is a disaster. I guess director Gustavo Lipztein got caught by his first time experience. The end should be a lot of better.

I wasn't born with enough downvotes, and IMDb I really wish to shout about this.

[travis-detert · 1/10 · 26 July 2013]

1 out of ten is not low enough for how terrible this movie is. To quote Marilyn Manson, "I wasn't born with enough middle fingers" comes to mind. This movie is absolutely, completely, and pathetically terrible.

The only thing that could have made it worse would have been that Maggie Grace had been cast as the annoying female. There is nothing good about this movie, whatsoever.

Any vote higher than 1/10 I guarantee came from someone that was involved in making this movie, at least a free trip to the location was worth maybe at most 2/10 stars.

TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, and VAPID. If someone I knew said they wanted to fund this movie I would ask them to just give me their money to burn without even enjoying the heat from it in a life threatening situation in the arctic.

At no point did I care about anything that was happening, any of the characters or plot. The only moment of enjoyment was when it was over.

I hated this movie so much I cared enough to write a warning to anyone looking for a movie to watch tonight. Don't make it this one.

A disturbing little hidden treasure, not for everyone, but you may like it

[lemon_magic · 7/10 · 19 March 2005]

I see a lot of conflicting opinions about "Dead In The Water", which doesn't surprise me. I think the filmmakers actually succeeded in making the movie they set out to make, but the film they wanted to make is pretty "noir" and cynical in its approach, and will definitely not appeal to many people. James Cain would feel right at home with a story like this, as would Cornell Woolrich and Jim Thompson. James Ridley might write a story like this, or Lawrence Block in one of his grimmer moods.

I caught DITW on cable late one night - the title pulled me in, and while the plot and the characters and the dialog were irritating enough to make me change the channel repeatedly, it was still the most interesting thing going on at that hour and I kept coming back to it (a bit like drinking Everclear or poking at a scab). Then it appeared again a couple of nights later, and I decided to make myself sit all the way through it to see what the deal was and why it hacked me off but made me want to watch it. Here's my conclusion: There's a certain morbid fascination with a film like this, as things go from OK, to bad, to worse, to awful, to screamingly awful to over-the-top lunacy by small steps, with each step inexorably developing from the previous one and driven by the logic of the situation and the moral bankruptcy of the characters. And there's a perverse glee and relief in seeing such attractive/social elite young people (who would normally stare right through you at the airport as they bopped along to their next fabulous resort stay) start to act like human hyenas as they grow more and more desperate. So if you like stories where people screw up big time and prove once again that humans are no damn good, this is the movie for you. Soccer moms and other faithful subcribers to the Disney Worldview should stay far, far away.

Kudos to the four actors for fine jobs in carrying out the director's vision; also, as other reviewers have noticed, beautiful soundtrack and great photography.

Deadbeat

[pip-31 · 1/10 · 27 February 2002]

This is one of the worst films I have ever seen. The script is the first thing that "died." It appeared that the cast was improvising the dialogue as they went along. Add to that, the award for worst sound editing. What a great combo: bad dialogue that you have to work at to understand!

All the characters muddled through the simplistic plot. The real mystery comes when you try to figure out how garbage like this ever got the green light.

Suicidal Tendencies

[raulfaust · 7/10 · 31 August 2011]

The imprudence of some young accidentally cause someone's death. Except it didn't happen last summer. A couple (boy and girl) go to a trip with two other horny males. Guess what? Of course, the other guys want the pretty girl and that provokes lots of fights. Thought we couldn't know it from the get go, Gloria shows how naughty she is. The extra actors are all lame and probably Brazilian; I don't think our country has only bad actors, but unfortunately, they are the majority. Directing, soundtrack and filmography of "Dead in the Water" are all terrible and amateurish. What really saves the film is the plot; the writer made a good job with the story, entertaining with a mysterious atmosphere to only reveal the real characters in the end. Some things end up unanswered, but, through the development of the characters and their behaviors, we get all of it. It's a shame they didn't invest in this film, producing it with so low- budget; I really hope (but doubt) they remake it with a decent director and budget...

A dead fish of a movie

[warrior-21 · 1/10 · 15 February 2002]

Have you ever been to the dentist? If you answered yes to this question and I hope everybody does answer yes, than you have a sneak peek into this movie. The movie drills into the bad acting of very annoying actors and actresses. The director must have had a lot of money to waste on film because this movie is an endless drowl of boring arguments and centers around a tease of a girl. The movie involves four characters who are out at sea-----------------------------the punctuation is because the movie wastes almost every minute out at sea. I have seen great ocean adventures in the big screen this is not one of them. I sound very cynical but I wanted to see this movie like another reviewer mentioned but this movie sucks(lousy) and should be missed at all costs.

A surprising tale of what can happen when you least expect it!

[vonpaulus · 8/10 · 16 October 2001]

This film takes place in Rio, Brazil. Four young people are having fun on a boat outside the city. Something happens and one of the members is thrown off. The others race away just to have their little revenge. But the unexpected happens, the boat brakes down and when they finally reach back to pick up the fourth member he is nowhere to be found. This results in a feud between the other three with a shocking ending!

A terrific tale which almost everyone can relate to one way or the other. Good cast and good performance by the actors.

Worth a Go!

[ThatsGoodInnit · 6/10 · 16 July 2006]

A lot of movies based in 1 particular place, can sometimes lose it's path and get boring like Open Water, but this movie with it's talented young cast of Henry Thomas, and the gorgeous looks of Dominique Swain kinda carried it off! the film once or twice needed something to pick it up abit more from feeling too quiet & , un-atmospheric, for a thriller! but with some better direction, this could've been a hit, more intensity, more of a cutting edge, it could've been a nail-biter, but in the end, it's predictable, BUT! with a sweet touch at the end which makes you feel like, it was all for nothing, if only if people were more honest, and youngsters didn't act quite so dull. maybe worth renting first before buying, but if you find it cheap, give it a go.

Starts out pretty bad but gets a lot better.

[jhonny7009 · 4/10 · 25 February 2002]

The first part of this film was terrible to watch but it got better. The acting, music, and most of all the look of the film was very unappealing to start with.

It seemed to me that one quarter of the way through this show they must have fired the first director of photography and hired a new one that did much better. This is the first movie that I have seen that made me truely understand the importance of a DP. I say this because in the first part of the movie the camera angles and lighting and framing make it hard to watch and enjoy. This definately improves before the half way mark and the show gets more exciting.

Dominique Swain is cute but she was disappointing in this show. I give most of the credit for me being able to finish this show to Henry Thomas. He is always good.

As a whole I would not recomend this show but I do think the writer/director took some cool risks(the plot and ending) so I will look for his future films.

A Disturbing Film

[NewBeanz · 21 February 2003]

Beautiful Cinematography and great Brazilian music. This is what this movie seems to be about for the first 20 minutes. But it's not, it's about good actors and a good plot... It may seem to go a bit slow at times but it's only 90 min or less... And the end will certainly get you thinking about it for days... 6/10

Don't waste your money on this! Watch it on cable.

[insomniac_rod · 5/10 · 19 August 2005]

HUGE SPOILERS

I wonder if this is a direct for cable movie. The plot is minimal, the acting is only regular, and it moves slow. Dominique Swain is the best thing about it in my opinion, she's very sexy and delivers a not so bad performance. The three supporting actors just deliver the necessary. The cinematography is pretty good; It's shinny, avid, and works perfect. Unlike movies like "Open Water" this movie doesn't makes you feel dizzy.

The movie starts slow and it only gets interesting towards the ending when the characters show their true personality and would do anything in order to stay alive and out of any responsibility. I didn't like the way the main problem is solved; I mean, killing all the characters is not what a viewer expects when a murder is the main situation of the movie. Then the ending really made me angry, how could Marcos survive if he didn't know how to swim and Gloria (an avid swimmer) drowns?

The producers didn't take too much time on crafting a decent ending. Anyways, this movie deserves a watch only if you have nothing better to do. I catched it on HBO at 1 am.

"Dead in the Water" stinks to the bottom.

[=G= · 4/10 · 15 February 2002]

"Dead in the Water" is a lousy film. The list of faults is too long to go into here. Suffice it to say it's a low budget dog with a lame story and subpar in almost all respects from screenplay to direction to cinematography to...etc. Don't waste your time with this loser.

The end of the movie can be seen a mile away

[jordondave-28085 · 3/10 · 3 June 2023]

(2001) Dead In The Water THRILLER

Written and directed by Gustavo Lipsztein has a story of a floating dead body seen floating on the water, we don't know who this person is except that it's a teenage girl then it shows another teenage female girl who appears to be a yuppie, she's looking out the window and seeing the crowd surrounding this drowned body and conversing with her dad about taking the son of a wealthy magnate on to a sail while on a yacht. Two of her friends also comes along and one of them happens to be her boyfriend and his name is Danny (Scott Bairstow) who also has a friend bringing named Jeff played by Henry Thomas. If watched enough of these, sometimes one can see the end coming a mile away and if their is any reason to watch this it would to see Dominique Swain's swimsuit poses.

Game theory!!

[cmcurrie2 · 9/10 · 9 August 2006]

I rented this film years ago because of the boat -- and found that I had stumbled upon a great little film. The plot might be a bit off-putting to those who do not know or do not like game theory. I bought a copy of the DVD today.

***SPOILER**** The film is a brilliant use of a classic 'game' in game theory -- The Prisoner's Dilemma (PD). When the first step of the game started, I was stunned -- and hoped I had guessed right that it was the underlying plot -- and it was. If you are interested in PD or game theory, you can find information on it by searching the internet. If you like Dead in the Water, see The Spanish Prisoner -- another game theory plot. I think House of Cards is also, but I haven't seen it in years.

Some of the commenters blame the actors for their acting ability* -- how could the usual cool/hip 'acting' portray the horrific binds that these characters put themselves into because they couldn't, or wouldn't, see one step in front of themselves?? It's not a nice story and these aren't people we want to know. Well, first you think you would like to know them and then you begin to realize that their beauty only goes so far. But that's the value of the story: disappointment in the friends' lack of character, and a bit of shadenfreude mixed with 'there but for the grace of god go I.' Usually when people do stupid things, nothing happens . . . . this time . . . it does.

I had a good laugh at the negative comments about the acting -- similar ones were made about Kevin Costner's "lack of acting" in Dances With Wolves, a huge number of people fell all over themselves to say that he couldn't "act like an Indian." They, of course, had never met a Native American or, if they did, didn't know it. I grew up with Native Americans, and Costner did an amazing portrayal of their reserve and dignity (and is part NA himself). So sad when Opinion and knowledge don't coincide!

I thought this was an awesome movie.

[cfmccroskey5 · 9/10 · 21 July 2006]

I saw this movie several years ago and I have been trying to find the name of it since. I love movies about seas, oceans, islands and boats. I found this movie very entertaining so much that I wish to buy it. As far as I'm concerned, it is a little like "The Beach", only different circumstances of course. If you like ironic thrillers containing oceans, and boats, I highly recommend this movie. Something like this has happened and will continue. I would also compare it to deep water of recent release. I'll admit that it has been some years since I've seen it but obviously it made an impact on me. I cannot comment on cinematography other than I remember the beautiful water where it was filmed and of course the beautiful girl. As far as the ending, I think it makes the whole movie worth watching. Hope you enjoy, I certainly did.

Not as bad after all

[info-590 · 5 January 2003]

I cannot understand all the negative comments posted here. Its not an excellent film but certainly gripping enough to make you want to see how it ends. Probably whats most challenging is sitting through the first half. I caught the film on satellite and lost its very beginning. The film had the right doses of suspense to make you wonder what's going to happen. Is it a shark in the sea or something else? Once you get through half of it its very gripping. I think the director managed to bring out the paranoia and madness which the youngsters would have instilled within themselves in a real life situation. Whether it is a feature film or MOW is somewhat questionable in my mind. I think its a damn good movie of the week (ie: for TV).

Could Have Been Much Better, and even...

[Martypoole2000 · 10/10 · 3 January 2003]

A hit. This could have been a hit if the right people where hired to do it. I agree with the beginning being very foolish with the 2nd scene making no sense. But when you watch the whole thing you find.... a good movie. Everything about the story said good, but the writer just didnt execute. The filming was bad to start off, but got much better. The acting was good, With Bairstow(Tuck Everlasting, Lonesome Dove) and Henry Thomas(E.T.) shining the most. All and all I give this movie a 7/10. A movie that makes it worth it to watch the whole thing.

Dominique Swain in a bikini.

[sknisley-1 · 24 October 2003]

This is not the worst film I have ever seen, but it isn't the best either. Truly the best aspect of the whole movie is the lovely Miss Swain strutting around the deck of a boat wearing an itsy-bitsy teenie-weenie pink bikini. Overall, it's a story of jealousy and paranoia taking control of a group of already out-of-control young adults.

MMMMMMM......Domiqiue Swain

[i_am_bernie_g · 8/10 · 24 March 2005]

What can I say about this movie? It was a pretty decent suspense movie. The plot of this movie is three young people taking a cruise and having to take a son of a coworker of Swain's father in the movie. The cruise turns out to be deadly. But if I ever watch it again, it will be for one reason and one reason only. 5 words: Dominique Swain in a bikini. That's all you need to know. Henry Thomas was cool as the guy who obviously wanted Swain's character. I envied every guy in that movie who put their hands on her. As she is quite lovely. Because, as I've said before, there is only one particular reason for seeing this movie: Dominique Swain in a bikini throughout the movie. Enough said.